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Human Pet
By : christineyoung
Category: Twilight Series > Het
Views: 17279 -:- Recommendations : 0 -:- Currently Reading : 0
Disclaimer: I do not own Twilight or make any money from this story.
Chapter List
- 16
- 17
- 18
Disclaimer: I don't own the world of Twilight. I make no money from this story.

Chapter 17

Edward POV

My happiness and relief from Bella’s rescue was short lived. It turned quickly into shock and disbelief when I heard the first thoughts from Aro and his guard. How had they known that we were here? More importantly, how in the world did Alice not see this?
I could tell from the timbre of her thoughts that she was as shocked as I was. She hadn’t seen any of this. I stepped in front of Bella, trying to shield her from view. This was the definition of unfair. She had been through so much already. She really was a danger magnet. It seemed like no matter where she was the worst kind of trouble always found her. I took her hand in mine and rubbed circles on her palm. I wasn’t sure if it was more for her benefit or my own. This change in events left me terrified for her safety. I couldn’t see a way out of this.
I barely listened to Aro’s monologue or Carlisle’s response. My mind was only on how to get Bella out alive. She knew too much. To the Volturi, her life was automatically forfeit. There was no way that she had survived as much as she had to die here now. The very thought enraged me. I wouldn’t allow it. There had to be something that I could do.
I focused on Aro. From his thoughts, I could see that he was extremely interested in Bella. He was careful to conceal why he was interested in her and how he knew so much about her. Then I gleaned a tidbit about using strong persuasion to get us to agree to something. The first thought that flew to my mind was that he would harm Bella.
I growled in warning, low in my throat. I would not let them harm her.
Aro laughed. Calm down, Edward. I will not harm your human girl. But you need to control yourself. I can’t have you attacking me in front of my guard. Felix has already expressed interest in making Bella his own mate and he is all too eager to take you out of the equation. You don’t want that to happen, do you?
I silenced myself, grudgingly. Damn Felix into the pits of hell, because that was exactly where he will end up if he so much as touches Bella. I found his figure amongst Aro’s guard. A great big hulk of a vampire that was even bigger than Emmett. I focused on his mind. His thoughts centered on Bella and all the things that he wanted to do to her. It was all I could do to keep my features absent of emotion when someone was having such blatant thoughts about my mate. I couldn’t let Bella fall into his hands. I returned my gaze to Aro.
He said, “Edward, perhaps I should start with you since your link with Bella is the strongest. Let me see your perspective of things.”
I turned to Bella and squeezed her hand. “Stay here, love. Everything will be fine. I’ll be okay.” I was worried about her. She was so pale and thin. Her hands felt cooler to the touch than I remembered. She should be someplace warm and not out in the elements in the middle of a field in Italy.
I reluctantly left Bella’s side and walked over to Aro. I lifted my hand to his and watched his face as he delved into my mind. His face was a blank slate; an emotionless mask as he read my memories. I listened closely to his mind. I needed some kind of warning as to what he was going to do so that I could plan around it. He was fascinated by my infatuation with Bella. La tua cantante he called her. My singer. Yes, she was my singer; mind, body, and soul. He was also intrigued by Bella’s silent mind. I cursed myself inwardly. Nothing good could come from Aro’s interest in Bella.
As my memories were picked over by Aro, I felt a tidal wave of guilt. This was entirely my fault. I had been weak and it may have sentenced us all to death. There was no way that I could hide my actions from Aro. He saw the way that I saved Bella from the van and my performance in the meadow when I was trying to make her stay away from me when I couldn’t stay away from her.
But he wasn’t giving anything away in his thoughts. He was keeping them carefully concealed from me. He had a veritable wall erected around his mind. Not even Alice was as adept at blocking her thoughts from me.
Suddenly, Aro’s eyes opened. “Thank you, Edward. That was most illuminating.”
I carefully kept my face blank as I took my spot next to Bella once again. I pulled her close and rubbed my hands along her arms to try and warm her. She was trembling, whether it was from fear or shock or cold, I did not know.
Aro directed his attention to Alice. He was obsessed with her and her gift. I could tell that he wanted her for the guard. He couldn’t hide that from me. He said, “Alice, my dear. Do you mind?”
“Not at all, Aro,” she said as she bounced gracefully over to him.

I watched Alice’s memories flit through Aro’s mind. Her first visions of Bella. The development of my relationship with Bella. How Bella was to become a vampire. I winced at the last vision and just barely caught Aro thinking that he was going to make that particular vision become a reality. I growled again, louder this time and Bella jumped beside me. I’d startled her.
Aro reprimanded me harshly through his thoughts. Edward, control yourself! Felix is waiting for you to slip.”
At the same time, Alice was screaming at me in her mind. Stop it, Edward! You are making things worse!”
Across the clearing, Felix was leaning forward in anticipation. His thoughts entirely focused on my bloody death, his triumphant victory, and staking his final claim on Bella.
I turned to Bella and pulled her close. I had missed her so much. This was a complete mockery of the happy reunion that I had hoped for. I pushed my nose into her hair and breathed deeply delighting in the burn that flared in the back of my throat. She smelled slightly different than I remembered. Of course, his smell still clung to her, but I didn’t care. This was something different. Something that I couldn’t put my finger on.
I whispered gently into her ear, “I’ve missed you, Bella. More than you can ever know. It was like a piece of me went missing. Don’t worry, love. I won’t let anything happen to you.”
She looked up at me and smiled her sweet smile that still lit up her face, but I noticed the sadness in her eyes. Their ever present sparkle was gone. She looked haunted now. I vowed that she would be happy again. No matter what I had to do to accomplish it. “I missed you, too. Edward, I’m sorry that I got you all involved in this.”
I shook my head. What was she thinking? How could she blame herself? Again, I cursed my inability to read her mind. “Bella,” I said gently. “Listen to me. This is not your fault. Please, don’t blame yourself. We will get through this together.” I squeezed her hand again and focused on Aro once more.
He had moved on to Jasper. It didn’t escape my notice that Aro was concentrating his attention on the most powerful members of my family. The ones with extra gifts. What was he playing at? His thoughts were still locked up tight. I was growing more and more suspicious.
I tried the minds of the other members of his guard. They, too, had their thoughts blocked from me. All except Felix, who was still thinking about Bella. What were they concealing? How had Felix become so fascinated with Bella so quickly after seeing her?
I shifted back to Aro. He was thinking about Bella, too. He was concerned about her. I didn’t know how to feel about the fact that he was worried about her. I was conflicted. I was happy that he realized her needs but I was suspicious of his motives. What was in it for him?
He intoned, “Carlisle, I’ve heard what I needed to hear. However, I must share my findings with my brothers. Then we must deliberate. It could take some time. I noticed that Bella is shivering. Perhaps we should adjourn to Volterra in the meantime. We have some very comfortable rooms as I’m sure you remember. We also have a kitchen so that Bella can have something to eat. I imagine that it has been awhile since she has had anything in her stomach.”
Carlisle was leery of Aro’s offer. He knew firsthand how Aro operated and he was sure there was another reason for Aro’s generosity.
He said, “Alice…?”
She made a face and replied, “I don’t know, Carlisle. Everything is hazy. Something is affecting my visions.”
She was terribly upset about this. She was shouldering the blame for us even being in this situation. There had to be something happening for it to affect her visions so strongly. Maybe Carlisle had some insight.
Carlisle himself was torn about what to do. He quickly weighed the pros and cons. If he refused, we might be executed where we stood. It wouldn’t do to turn down an invitation from Aro.
Finally he said, “Alright, my old friend. We’ll come with you to Volterra. This has been quite an ordeal for Bella and she needs rest. We appreciate your kindness.”
Aro smiled, “Splendid. Follow me.”

I noticed as he sent Alec and Jane to the rear to block our escape. I was very apprehensive as I scooped Bella up into my arms and started to run with the others. Whatever Aro was planning and deliberately blocking from me couldn’t be good. I analyzed his concern for Bella. While it seemed genuine, it was disconcerting. Everything that he did was always to his benefit in some way. Aro was self serving above everything else.
We arrived in Volterra in a matter of minutes. The proximity of the spot that James had chosen to face us in and Volterra was another cause for concern. It couldn’t have been entirely coincidental. Did he realize how close he was to the Volturi? We filed into a brightly lit lobby; the business end of the Volturi’s façade. Passing the receptionist, whom I noted was decidedly human, we were split into two groups and piled into an elevator. Once we were on the lower level, Aro turned and addressed his guard.
“Alec, Jane. Please show our guests to their rooms and make sure that they are comfortable. Carlisle, I must take my leave, my brothers and I have much to discuss. I will send for you when we have reached an agreement.” He turned and a moment later was gone.
Jane said, “This way, please.”
We followed her down a long corridor. There was a series of doors on the right side. She opened the first door. The room was richly furnished. There was even a small kitchen. I was confused about the kitchen. After all, the entire Volturi consisted of vampires. Why would they need the use of a kitchen?
Jane said, “The next few rooms are for your use as well. I must ask that you don’t leave this corridor. You aren’t prisoners here but Aro is known for swift decisions and he would be very put out if he had to send Demetri after you.”
I disregarded her words immediately. We were very much prisoners. She would be waiting at the end of the hall with her brother watching to make sure that we didn’t try to escape. I locked eyes with Alice and then looked at Carlisle.
He said, “Of course, Jane. Thank you for your hospitality.” She merely nodded and walked away briskly, her brother following behind.
I carried Bella into the room and laid her on the bed gently. She had fallen asleep almost as soon as I had picked her up. I was so worried about her. She looked so fragile. Her skin felt so much cooler to the touch. I covered her up afraid she was catching a cold. I sat next to her and ran my hands through her hair. I couldn’t keep my hands off of her. I needed to feel her to believe that she was really here with me and not just a figment of my imagination.
I sighed, feeling defeated. “Carlisle, what are we going to do?” I spoke softly, not wanting to disturb Bella.
He looked dismal as he contemplated how to answer. His thoughts were as sullen as his face. “I don’t know, son. I’m getting a very bad vibe about this. Aro doesn’t take the law lightly and we have crossed the line. They are not known for having compassion and showing leniency. All we can do is hope for the best and prepare for the worst. Just have faith that everything will work itself out.”
He looked thoughtful for a minute before he continued. “What I really don’t understand is how concerned he was about Bella’s well being. The law demands that she be destroyed and yet he was worried that she was cold and when she’d last eaten. Did he have a motive, Edward?”
Carlisle’s thoughts mirrored Aro’s. He was thinking that Bella needed to be woke up so that he could examine her and so that she could eat. He was as worried as Aro had been. I shook my head. “That’s just it Carlisle. He was blocking his thoughts for the most part. In fact, your concern for Bella in your thoughts just now mirrored his perfectly. He was concerned for her. He didn’t think about why he was concerned. And it wasn’t just him. The entire guard was blocking their thoughts, except Felix.”
I spat his name through my teeth, angry again over his thoughts about Bella. “His thoughts would put you to shame, Emmett. They were so vulgar. He was thinking about Bella and how he was going to kill me so that he could be her mate. The only thing that Aro let slip was his interest in why I couldn’t read Bella’s mind. He thought about using some form of persuasion against us. I inferred that he meant harming Bella though he didn’t directly have that thought.”
Carlisle seemed to be reading my mind this time. He was suspicious of the reasons that the guard had for blocking their thoughts from me. It wasn’t natural for the everyday person to go around blocking their mind. Aro must have told them to, but why? He also concluded that Aro’s interest in Bella was alarming.
“Aro’s actions are certainly suspicious, but what about Alice’s malfunctioning visions? Alice, you didn’t see any of this?”

She shook her head sadly, cradled in Jasper’s arms. She was an emotional mess, even with Jasper’s power. The only thing keeping her from having a complete meltdown was his calming influence and the strain was written all over his face. Guilt was etched into all of her thoughts. She blamed herself for the precariousness of our situation. “No, Carlisle. I have not had a clear vision since the one that I had of James and Bella at the airport. Everything since then has been indistinct. I’m not sure how, but I’m convinced that someone or something is blocking my visions.”
Rosalie spoke up, “So you can’t see how this is going to end?” She looked frightened. Guilt twisted uncomfortably in my gut. I had caused this.
Alice’s eyes lost focus for a moment and then she answered, “No, Rose. I can’t see the outcome of this or what Aro’s decision will be.”
Jasper caught my eye and arched his eyebrow. Why the sudden surge of guilt, Edward? This isn’t your fault.
“Yes, Jasper, this is entirely my fault. Alice, please stop blaming yourself. I couldn’t stay away. I couldn’t be strong enough to leave. I wasn’t strong enough to protect her from James. Now, due to my weaknesses, we are prisoners to Aro’s every whim.” I put my head in my hands in shame.
Carlisle laid his hand on my shoulder. “Son, this is not your fault and we don’t blame you. We’ll come together as a family and face this head on like any other challenge. I don’t regret that you found Bella. She has brought all of us so much happiness and despite her status as a human, she belongs with us.”
I looked up at my family. Their thoughts were all encouraging, even Rosalie. Which surprised me. She was always so hostile to me, especially since I met Bella. I smiled gratefully at them.
Carlisle began to pace, trying to strategize. “We need a plan. Edward, can we leave undetected?”
I grimaced, “No. Despite Jane’s words, we are prisoners. She and Alec are waiting at the end of the hall to make sure that we don’t leave. Not only that, Demetri would find us. He is a tracker like James but infinitely more powerful. It would only sign our death warrants.”
Carlisle tapped his chin. “Let’s wake Bella up. I really need to examine her and she needs to eat. I also have a feeling that she knows something more about this. She tried to warn us that James had set a trap.”
I agreed with Carlisle and it would ease my mind just a bit if Carlisle checked her out. She had been through so much and there was no telling what kind of injuries that she might have sustained. I was scared to wake her up. I didn’t want her to think that I was him. Who knows what he had subjected her to?
I settled with touching her shoulder tenderly. “Bella?” I shook her lightly when she didn’t respond and she startled awake. Her breath was coming in short gasps and her eyes were wide and fearful. Her reaction made me feel like such a shit. I’d frightened her. “Bella, please forgive me. I didn’t mean to scare you.”
She clutched the blanket, her body trembling slightly. She said softly, “Don’t apologize, Edward. You didn’t do anything wrong. James….he…. It’s my fault that I overreacted.”
I took her hands in mine, frowning when her hands didn’t feel ant warmer than before. Shouldn’t she have warmed up some by now? James drank too much from her. Bastard. She didn’t have enough blood to warm her body. Worry coursed through my body and dread clenched in my silent heart.
“Bella,” I said soothingly squeezing her hands, “This is not your fault. Please try to understand that.”
She shook her head, tears welling up in her soulful eyes. “No, Edward. I was stupid. I went to meet him. I didn’t wait for you. Now you all are here with them.”
My heart ached for my beautiful, broken girl. This was going to take awhile for her to overcome but I would fix her. She deserved no less.
Carlisle put his finger under her chin and tilted her head so that he could look her in the eyes. “Bella, sweetie, we understand why you did what you did. We know how much your family means to you, but you must understand that your response to James has no bearing with the Volturi.”
She sobbed loudly and I pulled her onto my lap and further into my embrace. I rocked back and forth trying to calm her. I couldn’t stand to see her hurting so much.
She cleared her throat after a moment, “Carlisle, James has everything to do with the Volturi. When we got to Italy, he brought us here. He met with Aro. Nothing much was spoken between them. He touched James’ hand and then he held my hand. Then he said he had to meet with his brothers. When he returned he asked James to help lure you to the countryside. From his choice of words, I thought it was a trap. I tried to warn you, but James stopped me.” Her hand unconsciously rubbed her neck as she remembered how he had stopped her. James’ handprint was plainly printed on her pale flesh.
We were shocked by Bella’s revelation. James had brought her here. Aro had touched her. Carlisle resumed his pacing. “Bella, did Aro say anything at all when he touched you?”
Her eyebrows scrunched together as she tried to remember. She said, “He didn’t say anything to me specifically but he did say the name Jane.”
I was horrified. He had tested Jane’s gift on her. Carlisle was equally disturbed. He had come to the same conclusion. “Did anything happen after he said that name?”
She looked confused and I couldn’t blame her. She had no idea why Carlisle was asking her these questions. “No, Carlisle. Nothing happened. He just looked at me and went to talk to his brothers. I’m confused. Please tell me what is going on?”
Carlisle took her hand in his and I felt his shock at finding her hand so cool to the touch. It concerned me even more. “Bella, Aro can read thoughts like Edward. Only his gift requires him to touch you to hear you and he hears every thought that you have ever had not just what you are thinking at the time. I believe that your mind was silent to him like it is to Edward. I believe that he was testing you.”
She said, “Oh, so that is what he was doing in the field. He was reading your thoughts.”
Carlisle got up and resumed his pacing a frown settling onto his features. “Yes, that was what he was doing. This changes everything. Aro must be after more than just upholding the law. Why else would he turn on James? Luckily enough for us, he did. We would have died in that field otherwise. Bella, honey, are you hungry? When did you eat last?”
She bit her lip and said, “I don’t know, Carlisle. Before we came to Italy. I didn’t really know how much time was passing.”
I cursed, inwardly. That bastard. Feeding from her and ignoring her own needs. Carlisle expression was severe and his mind was screaming profanities. I was shocked because Carlisle was always the picture of self control. “Emmett, see what you can find in the kitchen for Bella.” He smiled widely and raced off at vampire speed for the kitchen. He was happy to be doing something for Bella.
Carlisle turned back to Bella. “I hate to ask you this, Bella, but I need to examine you. If it makes you uncomfortable, Rosalie or Edward could do it. They have both been to medical school.”
Bella said, “No, Carlisle. It’s fine. I trust you.”
He smiled, “Okay, sweetie. Just lay on the bed and I’ll be right back.” He pulled us all into the kitchen. “I don’t think Bella will be comfortable having everyone there. Jasper and Alice can help make Bella some food. Esme and Rosalie, run her a bath. I know she will want to clean up. Edward, you can stay with her. She needs you.”
I breathed a sigh of relief. I was positive that he was going to make me leave, too. We returned to the bedroom. Bella was laying stiffly on the covers. I reached fro her hand and squeezed it reassuringly. Carlisle explained what he was going to do. “Bella, this is going to be basic as I don’t have the necessary tools. It will be enough for now. Do you feel any pain anywhere? Anything that feels out of place or abnormal?”
“I’m cold, like I can’t get warm. My throat hurts.”
Carlisle moved her hair away from her neck and I got a good look at the bruises that James had caused. His fingers traced the silvery crescent shaped scar that James had left on her. It was almost completely healed. Carlisle was blocking his thoughts from me and apprehension bubbled in my mind. He put his hands on either side of her skull and gently tilted it side to side. “Does this hurt?”
“No, it feels fine. The pain is more in the throat area.”
Carlisle’s eyebrows furrowed at this information. “Can you breathe okay?”
“Yes.”
He moved to her arms. James had cut her several times so that he could feed. Nothing was very deep. Just enough to make her bleed. Seeing the results of his sadistic tendencies made me want to kill him all over again.
I heard Carlisle’s worry over how cool she was to the touch. I had definitely noticed her change in temperature too. He didn’t voice his worries. He didn’t want to scare her. “Bella, you seem to be okay but I want to be sure. Once we leave, I want to go get you x-rayed to make sure that you don’t have any broken bones. For now, do you want a bath?”
Her face brightened. “Yes, that sounds wonderful.”
He smiled warmly at her. “Good. Esme and Rosalie will help you.”
She stood and walked over to the bathroom. As soon as the door shut, I rounded on Carlisle. Keeping my voice quiet so that Bella couldn’t hear me I demanded, “What is wrong with her? You are keeping something from me.”
Carlisle raked his hand through his hair and sighed, “I’m not sure, Edward. It’s only a theory. Did you notice how cool she was to the touch?”
I nodded my head. I had definitely noticed.
He continued, “We know that James has fed from her. I think his venom has mixed with her blood. It has kept her alive. Her body temperature has to be significantly lower for her to feel that cool. What happens when a person’s body temperature is too low?”
“Hypothermia sets in.”
“Correct. Does Bella look hypothermic?”
“No.” It couldn’t be, but it would also explain why she smelled differently.
“I don’t think she has enough venom in her to change her just yet. But I believe that it has done something to her. Her body temperature is lower, she complained that her throat hurt, and I think that it enhanced whatever gift that she has. I believe that she has been the one affecting Alice’s visions. Aro suspects it too, I’d wager. That is why he so interested. The fact that he tried to read her mind and his subsequent interest proves it.”
I felt like I’d been punched in the gut. There was only one more question. One that I was afraid to ask because I knew that I wasn’t going to like his answer. “What will happen to her, Carlisle?”
His face was bleak and his eyes held a look of despair. “She’s dying, Edward. Slowly. Even if she had a blood transfusion it would only prolong the inevitable. She’ll have to be changed soon if you don’t want to lose her for good.”
My body sagged to the floor in defeat. How could she ever forgive me for failing her at such epic proportions? I had fallen short on so many things. The one thing that I had wanted to prevent was going to happen for I couldn’t stand to lose her. I had lost her once and I didn’t want to lose her again.
“Are you going to tell her, Carlisle?”
He looked pained for a moment. “I think she has a right to know, but I think we should wait until we get her home. She has enough stress right now without adding this to it.”
We turned as the bathroom door opened. Bella came out followed by Rosalie and Esme. She looked so much better than before. She wasn’t as tense and her face was happier. Whatever Rosalie and Esme had done, it had worked wonders on Bella. I was suddenly very grateful for their presence in my life. Bella sat on the bed as Emmett brought her breakfast.
He made such a show of it that Bella laughed out loud. You would think that he thought he was Emeril Lagasse or something. It looked like Emmett had a new hobby. He placed the tray on the bed beside Bella. He smiled widely at her. “There wasn’t much to choose from but I made you oatmeal and toast. I’ll cook you a giant breakfast when we get home.”
She smiled back at him. “I’m going to hold you to that. French toast is sounding excellent right now. But this smells good. Thanks, Emmett.”
Carlisle locked eyes with me. Look at her eyes, Edward.
I did as he asked and was shocked by what I saw. They had the faintest traces of red in them. Not enough that she could see yet but I could. She didn’t have much time left.
Just as Bella was finishing her oatmeal, I heard thoughts coming from the hallway followed by sharp knocks on the door.
Jane and Alec.
Carlisle opened the door. “Jane, lovely to see you again.”
She smiled sweetly, “Carlisle, Aro is ready for you and your family. Follow me, please.”
I took Bella’s hand and followed my family, praying to the heavens that everything would be okay. Praying that we would survive to see another day.

End Note: Only three chapters left. Let me know what you think? Reviews are greatly appreciated.
- 16
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Human Pet	By : christineyoung Category: Twilight Series > Het Views: 17279 -:- Recommendations : 0 -:- Currently Reading : 0
Disclaimer: I do not own Twilight or make any money from this story.

Human Pet